


A safe place for the heart to heal

by sugarandspace



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Angst, Drowning, Flashbacks, Gen, Grief/Mourning, Panic, Past Character Death, Protective Alec Lightwood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-10
Updated: 2019-08-10
Packaged: 2020-08-14 13:56:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 499
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20193385
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sugarandspace/pseuds/sugarandspace
Summary: Magnus and Ragnor have been best friends since childhood. After a tragic accident claims his friend's life Magnus can't seem to let go. Often finding himself parked in front of his friend's house, his world is turned upside down then he pulls up to find moving trucks in front of the house and someone new seems to have moved in.





	A safe place for the heart to heal

**Author's Note:**

  * In response to a prompt by Anonymous in the [sh_ficletinstruments](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/sh_ficletinstruments) collection. 

> **Prompt:**  
  
Magnus and Ragnor have been best friends since childhood. After a tragic accident claims his friend's life Magnus can't seem to let go. Often finding himself parked in front of his friend's house, his world is turned upside down then he pulls up to find moving trucks in front of the house and someone new seems to have moved in.

Magnus hears the waves.

Smells the ocean air.

Feels the ribs give way under his hands as he tries to push the water out of his friend’s lungs.

He knows how to get rid of the flashbacks - for the moment, it’s never been a lasting solution - so he gets into his car and drives to the place where he has a lot of good memories from. The house next to his childhood home. Ragnor’s home. Whenever he feels the pain too strongly, he drives there, and it helps. 

But this time is unlike the others because there are moving trucks in front of the house. Someone new has moved in and is going to be making memories there. The house had been empty since Ragnor’s family moved away after the accident. They claimed that the memories were doing more harm than good.

Like other times, Magnus stays in the car and looks at the house, letting the memories flood in. The door to the house opens, and a tall man with dark hair starts walking towards him. 

Magnus’ heart beats fast when the man knocks on his window, his expression hard.

Magnus tries to look apologetic when he rolls his window open and gets ready to hear whatever the intimidating stranger wants to say.

“Is there a reason you are staring at my sister’s house?” The man’s voice is low and threatening.

“I-” Magnus starts, but he doesn’t know what to say. The whole story feels like too much. “I’m sorry.”

“I suggest you leave and never come back,” the man says, crossing his arms over his chest. “I don’t know what kind of creep you are but the next time I see you here I’m going to call the cops.”

Magnus panics. Not because the man threatened him with police, but because he can’t stomach the idea of never coming here again.

“Please,” he says, his voice pleading. “You don’t understand.”

“What is there to understand?” The man asks, some of his hard exterior cracking as he sees Magnus tear up. Magnus would be ashamed if he had any room for other emotions than sadness and panic. He lost Ragnor, he doesn’t want to lose this place as well.

“My friend died,” Magnus says, and it doesn’t hurt any less than it hurt months ago. “My friend used to live here and he drowned and-”

“Hey, hey,” the stranger says, his voice now calm. “Can you come out of the car? I’m not going to do anything, I just think it would do you good to have some fresh air.”

Magnus nods and gets out of the car and leans his hands to his knees as he’s trying to get his breathing under control. He can feel the stranger next to him, but he stays quiet until Magnus calms down.

“I’m sorry,” Magnus says and looks at him.

“Don’t be,” the man says. “Would you like to come inside for a moment?”

Magnus hesitates before he answers.

“Yes.”

**Author's Note:**

> I don't know, I tried.


End file.
